Laxey Wheel

Built in the 1850s to pump water from the mines.

Set high on the hillside towards the hamlet of Agneash and
overlooking Laxey Village is the Great Laxey Wheel. This was built
in 1854 to pump water from the workings of the Great Laxey Mining
Company. Mining was of considerable importance to the economy of
Laxey and the Great Laxey Mine was one of the major producers of
lead and zinc in the British Isles.

The Laxey water wheel was designed by the Manx engineer Robert
Casement. The wheel's axle was forged by the Mersey Iron Works of
Liverpool but the cast iron rims were made on the Island by
Gelling's Foundry at Douglas. The timbers of the wheel were shaped
by Manx artisans and the whole structure was assembled here on the
Island.

The official opening of this huge wheel took place in September
1854 and it was set in motion by the Honourable Charles Hope, the
Lieutenant Governor of the Island. The wheel was named "Lady
Isabella" in honour of the Governor's wife. The wheel has a
diameter of 72 feet 6 inches, (over 22 metres), and a width of 6
feet. It is capable of pumping 250 gallons of water per minute from
a depth of almost 1,500 feet. The mine shaft from which the water
was pumped was sited about 450 yards from the great wheel. The
power from the wheel was transmitted to the pumping mechanism by a
series of rods supported by and running along an imposing masonry
viaduct.

In 1929 when mining came to an end, the Lady Isabella was
acquired by Mr Edwin Kneale of Laxey and it continued as a great
tourist attraction. The wheel was as much associated with the Isle
of Man as were the cats without tails and the world famous
succulent kippers. In 1965 the Manx government bought the water
wheel and the restoration work which followed, preserved it for
future generations. Since 1989 it has been under the control of
Manx National Heritage.

The "Lady Isabella" is claimed to be the largest water wheel in
Europe: possibly in the world.

In the meantime, after over a century and a half, and in the
words of a popular, modern song -